Keeping
a positive customer experience (CX) in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic may
require thinking outside the box a bit. Fear and worry drive many people during
difficult times. No matter what type of business you own, the virus impacts you
on some level. Perhaps you’ve had to cancel things, maybe you sell essential
items and can’t keep up with demand, or maybe your customers aren’t sure how
they will pay their bills much less order from you during this time.

The
Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recognizes that people might
battle stress
during the outbreak. You can offer a beacon of positivity amid of all the
anxiety and uncertainty. While the world isn’t operating on a “business as
usual” principle right now, you can still offer some consistency to your
clients.

Improving
the CX of your brand is a proactive approach at any time. During a virus
epidemic, though, it’s an excellent way to offer some relief to anxious
customers. Here are eight simple ways of improving your business practices now.

1. Train Employees to Be Upbeat

If
you run an essential business, your employees may feel exhausted from keeping
up with demand. In non-essential roles, workers worry if layoffs are imminent.
It’s easy to let their concerns creep into dealings with the public. Customers
are sometimes on edge and nasty to frontline workers as well.

However,
it’s more important now than ever before that companies offer a happy, upbeat
persona to target audiences. There is enough frightening news to go around.
Work on adding some cheer to the day. Start by setting an example for your
staff. Give them the perspective of how scared people are and how some respond
to fear by snapping at others. If they understand the customer’s psychology a
bit better, they’ll be less likely to react themselves negatively.

2. Offer Alternatives

If
you planned a conference or any event in the coming weeks, you wouldn’t be able
to host it the way you originally planned. Instead of just canceling the
occasion, try to come up with an alternate plan. For example, you might offer an online
version of
a conference with some exclusive perks, such as one-on-one mentoring with some
of the speakers. Reach out to sponsors and exhibitors to find creative ways of
showcasing them virtually.

Replace
special moments, such as keynote speaker dinners, with other perks that are
just as attractive. Host a virtual wine party where everyone brings their own
wine. Have the keynote meet with five or six people at a time in an online chat
room. Try to think outside the box.

3. Revamp User Interface

Spend
time testing the user
interface
(UI) for your website or app. One example of where apps sometimes fail during
these peak online shopping times appear in popular grocery retailers. They
can’t handle the additional traffic sent to their curbside pickup options. For
some, their sites went down, error messages prevailed and appointment times are
in short supply.

Anticipate
increased online traffic or pickup requests and revamp how your app handles the
surge. Improve any issues, so users have a seamless experience.

4. Create a Customer Journey Map

Lay
out a map that walks through the journey a customer makes after landing on your
website or making the first contact with you. There may be several entry points
that all lead to the same end. Think through what the experience is at each
aspect of the journey. Can you simplify things in any way? What would make that
step of the trip easier on your clients?

5. Improve Mobile Experience

According
to the Pew Research Center, about 96% of Americans now own a cellphone, and
about 81% own smartphones. More and more people access the internet from their
mobile devices. How does your website measure up? As people stay at home and
shop from their armchairs, your site may see a spike in traffic from small
screens. Make sure the experience is a positive one for all your users, and
your text and graphics respond to different devices.

6. Speed Up Response Times

In
a report from McKinsey, they discovered most people expect a
response in
as little as five minutes. One option is adding a live chat feature to your
website and staffing it with agents who understand your products and policies.
If customers call on the phone, do whatever you need to reduce wait
times.

If
you hold specific business hours, state that upfront. Don’t make customers go
through a lengthy selection process with a computerized voice only to discover
no one is there to help them. You may need to hire additional call center
representatives to handle the extra volume or provide overtime to your current
workers. Do whatever is necessary to improve response time and thus enhance the
overall encounter.

7. Protect Customer Data

New
rules such as the General Data
Protection Regulation (GDPR) make it more vital than ever before to protect sensitive info
your customers share with you. People want to know you aren’t going to sell
their email or phone number to a third party. They also want to be sure their
identity details are secure from hackers. Ramp up your policies and put
additional security measures in place.

You
may attract a number of new customers who are home browsing the internet. Be
prepared for who will handle the additional information and the security
measures needed to secure everything.

8. Ask for Feedback

People
have a bit more time right now because they can’t leave their homes and go out
to dinner and a movie. The current lockdown is a good time to seek feedback
from your regular customers about how you might improve the experience for
them. Send out a survey and ask some specific questions about your website,
your order fulfillment process, the products and any other area you’d like to
grow.

Include
a section that allows them to share their thoughts. There may be areas where
you need to improve that you didn’t think about. Giving them a blank slate
where they might express their ideas provides an opportunity to advance in ways
you never expected.

Get Proactive

Think
ahead to the issues your customers are most likely to have during difficult
times. If you plan for problems, you’ll have a response ready and be able to
avoid some of the pitfalls. Know how you’ll handle someone who is on an
emotional roller coaster, or what you’ll do if a customer can’t pay on time
because they are out of work. Knowing the options you can offer can take a lot
of stress off you and the customer.

Lexie is a web designer and typography enthusiast. She spends most of her days surrounded by some HTML and a goldendoodle at her feet. Check out her design blog, Design Roast, and follow Lexie on Twitter.